Jeff King (musher)

Jeff King
Jeff King (center) posing for photos with spectators during the 2013 Kuskokwim 300.
Born1956 (age 68–69)
North Fork, California, United States
OccupationDog musher
SpouseDonna Gates (?–2011)
Children3

Jeff King (born 1956) is an American musher and sled dog racer. He is generally credited with introducing the sit-down sled which has largely replaced the standing sled traditionally used by distance mushers.

Early life

King was born and raised in California.[1]

Mushing career

King moved to Alaska in 1975 and began racing in 1976. He won the Yukon Quest in 1989, and the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 1993, 1996, 1998, and, at age 50, the 2006 Iditarod,[2] making him the oldest musher to have ever won the event, a distinction he held until 2017, when Mitch Seavey won at age 57.[3][4] King ran the 2022 Iditarod, his 30th, but not the 2023 race.[5][6] During the 2016 Iditarod race, King and fellow competitor Aliy Zirkle were assaulted by an intoxicated man on a snowmobile. The snowmobile struck King's team, killing one of his dogs.[7][8]

King's "Idita-Rider" -- a person who rides in the front storage compartment for the ceremonial start of the race[9] -- for the 2005 Iditarod was a child sponsored by the Make-a-Wish Foundation.

King has also won many other sled dog races. He has a kennel, Husky Homestead, near the entrance of Denali National Park. As of 2023 he was still racing.[10]

King was inducted into the Iditarod Hall of Fame in 1999.[11] He was inducted into the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.[12][13]

Mentoring

King mentored Amanda Otto while she competed in her first races of Husky Homestead dogs in the Copper Basin 300, the Willow 300, and the Alpine 200 in 2021 to qualify for the Iditarod.[14][15][16][17] Otto raced in the Iditarod for the first time in 2022, finishing 27th of 49 entries.[14] In 2023 Otto placed second in the Yukon Quest Alaska, finishing in 4 days, 11 hours, and 17 minutes.[18] Her team was in such good condition at the end of the race, still yelping and pulling, that she was awarded the Humanitarian Award by the race veterinary team in the first unanimous decision in race history.[19]

Innovations

In the early 2000s King developed a sled with a seat for the musher, which he used in the 2004 Iditarod for the first time; he became so comfortable that he fell asleep and fell off the sled.[20] His version of a sit-down sled was widely adopted by other distance mushers.[21][22][23] He also developed a method of heating the musher's handlebar and an exercise wheel similar in design to a hamster wheel for dogs.[1]

Personal life

King has three daughters with his former wife, Donna Gates. The couple divorced in 2011.

Jeff King speaking at a Stop Kavanaugh Rally on the US Capitol Grounds, September 4, 2018

Victories

  • Iditarod (4 times): 1993, 1996, 1998, 2006[1]
  • Yukon Quest: 1989[1]
  • Kuskokwim 300 (9): 1991, 1992, 1993, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006 and 2013
  • Copper Basin 300 (2): 1995, 2010
  • Tustumena 200 (3): 2000

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Jeff King". Alaska Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  2. ^ Medred, Craig; Caldwell, Suzanna (2013-03-15). "Mitch Seavey claims victory in Iditarod 2013". Alaska Dispatch. Archived from the original on 2013-03-15. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  3. ^ St. George 2006, para. 2.
  4. ^ Alaska Dispatch, 13 March 2013
  5. ^ "'A little scary': Iditarod begins with smallest field ever". AP News. 2023-03-02. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  6. ^ Williams, Tess (8 March 2022). "From soccer player to musher: Rookie Amanda Otto tackles Iditarod with dogs raised by a champion". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  7. ^ Medred, Craig (2016-03-13). "Snowmobile slams into Iditarod teams, killing one dog and injuring others". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
  8. ^ Cole, Dermot (2016-12-19). "Jail time, fine handed down for snowmachine attack on Iditarod teams". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved 2023-11-23.
  9. ^ "The IditaRider Experience". Iditarod. 2014-01-12. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  10. ^ Today, Richard Arlin Walker, special to Indian Country (2023-01-27). "Five Indigenous mushers set to compete in 2023 Iditarod despite rising costs". Alaska Public Media. Retrieved 2023-06-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ Anchorage Daily News, "Jeff King Among Dog Racing Royalty", February 20, 2006. /"Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-10-12. Retrieved 2010-04-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. ^ "Inductees". Alaska Sports Hall Of Fame. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  13. ^ "Alaska Sports Hall of Fame 2017: Jeff King". Alaska's News Source. 2017-04-20. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  14. ^ a b Boner, Jeannette (2022-03-30). "Rookie musher Amanda Otto finds her footing". Jackson Hole News&Guide. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  15. ^ Boner, Jeannette (2021-06-23). "Local dog sledder Amanda Otto chases down Iditarod dream". East Idaho News. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  16. ^ Williams, Tess (8 March 2022). "From soccer player to musher: Rookie Amanda Otto tackles Iditarod with dogs raised by a champion". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  17. ^ "Amanda Otto". Mushing Alaska. 3 February 2023. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  18. ^ "Sass Wins, Otto Surprise Second". KUAC-TV. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  19. ^ "Sass Wins, Otto Surprise Second". KUAC-TV. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  20. ^ "Backen retakes lead after first Yukon checkpoint". ESPN. 2004-03-14. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  21. ^ "Gear Guide: Monster Sled of Jeff King 2008". Mushing. 2008-09-01. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  22. ^ Maguire, Sean (2019-03-05). "Jeff King's latest invention for Iditarod 2019: An easy-access tow sled". Alaska's New Source. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  23. ^ "Iditarod 35: Creativity leads to improvement of gear". Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. 2007-03-13. Retrieved 2023-06-29.